Why She Couldn't Stay
by FanPyre-09
Summary: Eliot Spencer had an actual loving relationship. That is, until she left while he was out on job. More than a year later, the one that got away returns with an explanation. Birthday gift for a fellow writer/Leverage fan.


Hey! It has been waaay too long since I wrote anything and I am so sorry, guys! I know I posted a Castle story a little while back (a product of insomnia at 4am titled 'Wanted') and I am currently working on a one-shot Christmas sequel for that but and short on ideas. This is my first Leverage story and I actually wrote it as a birthday gift for a friend of mine 2 years ago (ChelzToddBrook) but am just now getting around to editing and posting it. Please let me know what you guys think!

It had been a long two weeks, the job taking twice as long as anticipated. Everyone had been put into situations they hadn't expected and three of them had ended up in the hospital. When the bomb went off near the van, Eliot and Sophie were the only ones far enough from the blast to just get a couple of scrapes and bruises.

"I might need more than 90 minutes of sleep to recover from this one," Eliot mumbled to himself as he toed off his shoes and stripped on the way to his bed. The memory of the blast was still fresh in his mind. Sophie wasn't going to leave Nate's bedside and while Parker had a few broken bones herself, there was no way she was going anywhere with Hardison in a coma.

He made it all the way to his boxers before he heard the knock on his door. At first, he thought he was mistaken because he hadn't slept in three days but after they knocked the second time, he made his way to the door.

"Who in the hell is here at 3 in the morning?" he mumbled as he slid the chain locks across the door. When he opened it, he wasn't expecting who was on the other side.

"Hey, Eliot. How've you been?" she said.

"Michelle? What, what are you doing here?" He opened the door a bit more and leaned against the frame, disregarding her sweep of his nearly naked body.

"I, uh, I wanted to see you. Well, I needed to see you, actually. Can I come in?" He hadn't seen the beautiful blond in almost a year and a half but she hadn't seemed to have changed a bit.

"Yeah, sure." He moved back and pulled the door all the way open. "Come on in."

"Thanks. I'll try not to take up too much time, I know it's late."

"It's fine, I was just about to shower. But, it can wait." As she crossed to the couch, he couldn't help but have flashes of the last time she had been in his apartment: clothes everywhere, whipped cream and chocolate sauce in odd places, and he was pretty sure those handcuffs were still floating around somewhere. But why was she here now? He shook his head and went to join her. "So, what did you need to see me about?"

"Um, I don't really know how to say this…. Why don't I just come back in the morning? I'm really sorry for showing up so late. I'll just head back to my hotel, I'm beat after that flight." Her yawn let him know how much she needed a bed. She stood to leave but he caught her arm before she could take more than a couple of steps. Her blue eyes met his and she stopped in her tracks. He could tell she was no doubt thinking about their last encounter.

"Why don't you just crash here for the night? I can take the couch, I don't mind."

"I can't do that, you look like you've had a rough couple of days. I'll just go and –" He cut her off when he pulled her close.

"No, you'll stay here for the night. I'll go take my shower and you can get settled in. Go ahead." He walked her toward his bed and sat her on the edge then made his way to the bathroom. "You better still be here when I get out." With that, he closed the door and removed the last article of clothing separating him from a nice, long, hot shower. And Lord knows he needed it after the job he just had. He twisted the knobs and got the water to the perfect temperature, almost scalding but not enough to burn. He had barely gotten his hair wet when he heard a door close. And not just any door apparently. He looked up to see Michelle wrapped in a towel outside his glass shower. She moved to slide it open and dropped the towel.

"Mind if I join you?" she said as she stepped inside.

"Uh, sure." He stepped aside to allow her room underneath the steady stream of water. This was probably the one place they hadn't been together last time. It was his place to think and the one place he could be completely himself without putting up the hard exterior required in his line of work.

"Thanks," she said as she closed her eyes and arched back to wet her hair. He couldn't help but think how beautiful she looked as his eyes followed the water pouring over her blonde hair and rolling down the curve of her body. He swallowed as he tried to resist the temptation to take her then and there. She had just gotten there, after all. More and more flashes of last time flooded his memory and it took all he had to control himself. "Could you pass the shampoo?" she asked, interrupting his train of thought, probably for the better.

"Um, yeah." He cleared his throat and grabbed the bottle then he offered it to her waiting hand. As his trembling hands brushed against her steady ones, it slipped from his fingers and fell to the tiled floor. When they both reached instinctively to catch it, their fingers interlocked and her eyes popped open. Dark blue met light and the lost bottle was forgotten as he slid his hand from her fingers to her wrist and slowly pulled her body against his own, her hand sliding up his broad chest.

As skin met skin, her curves felt wonderful against his aching body. He slid his free hand up her left arm and around her neck to cup her face. They hadn't lost eye contact and as he pulled her face closer to his, he searched her face for any sign not to proceed but saw none. She closed her eyes just as he felt her breath against his lips. He did the same and their lips molded together for the first time in over a year. Michelle released a moan and pushed herself closer to his bruised body, wrapping her free hand around his neck. After a few minutes, they pulled away to finally take a breath and he pressed his forehead against hers. With a mutual smile, Eliot lifted her body and wrapped her legs around his waist. They passed under the warm stream of water as he moved them towards the wall and with a kiss, her back was pressed against slick tiles. With some maneuvering, he laced his fingers with hers and pinned her hands against the wall. He pulled his lips away from hers and made a trail of kisses down her face and neck then made his way to her chest before working his way back up the other side. He slid his hands along her arms and down her sides to let them rest on her ribcage. As he began to lift her, she pulled away and placed her hands on his shoulders, stopping his movements.

"Wait. Not like this," she whispered against his cheek. She leaned her head back against the wall as they made eye contact once again. With a smirk, he settled her on the floor and took her hand in his. He turned and shut off the forgotten water then slid the glass door open, pulling Michelle along with him.

When she reached for the towel, he chuckled and said, "You can leave it." She dropped the towel and followed Eliot into his bedroom, both dripping along the hardwood floor. He turned unexpectedly and brought his lips to hers as he continued to walk backwards until his knees hit the mattress. He fell towards the comforter that hadn't been touched in weeks, pulling Michelle on top of him. As they hit the bed, he let out a groan. Being sandwiched between the mattress and Michelle put a sudden and unexpected strain on his tender body.

"Are you alright?" she breathed. She had had to deal with his incidents last time they were together so she knew when to be cautious. She leaned up to try to examine his naked body but he pulled her back to his chest.

"I'm fine, just sore from the last job." With that, he kissed her again as he rolled her onto her back and scooted the two of them towards the headboard.

"Are you sure? I don't want to do anything to make you hurt more than you already are." She stopped his motions in the middle of the bed and held his face between her hands to look him in the eyes.

"Yeah. I'm fine, Michelle." He placed his free hand on her cheek and pulled her closer for a soft kiss before moving the rest of the way up the bed.

The next few hours were filled with laughter, kisses, a few trips to the kitchen for supplies, and getting to know each other's bodies again. When the sun finally made its way over the horizon, the sheets and blanket had been ruined and were strewn about the apartment. A second shower was also in order for the pair of them, separately this time.

As the sunlight streamed in, Eliot was stirred from his 30 minute nap he had managed to squeeze in after their antics. He turned towards the sleeping form next to him and smiled. It had been too long since he'd had a beautiful woman as special as Michelle in his bed. Well, on the floor anyways. After meeting at the diner two years ago when the punk waiter wouldn't leave her alone, who would have thought they'd be where they are now? He still didn't know why she had left the way she did. He'd come home from a job to find a note simply saying, "_I can't." _Sure, he'd been hurt – he hadn't been in a serious relationship since Aimee – but he'd just figured it was because of his line of work. Maybe now, he'd get some answers. He got out of bed to make it to the shower, hopefully a successful one this time.

After 10 minutes of serious scrubbing, Eliot got out of the shower, slid on some clean jeans, and started to clean up the massive mess they had made while trying not to wake Michelle in the meantime. He managed to get the sheets and blanket into the washing machine along with their clothes which had somehow managed to get covered in their kitchen "supplies" and took out the trash. When he got back, Michelle was sitting up on the floor where they had fallen asleep. As he walked in the door, she smiled as she said his name and he couldn't help but smile at her wrapped in the towel he had left behind after his shower. She had whipped cream and chocolate syrup everywhere and was in definite need of a hot shower. Hopefully the hot water had built back up in the last 20 minutes.

"Morning," he said as he made his way to her and offered his hand.

"Morning," she replied as she took it and stood.

"You look like you could use a shower, Sweetheart," he said as he turned her body towards the bathroom. She wasn't expecting it when he smacked her ass as she walked away so the look she shot him wasn't completely unwarranted, although the laugh wasn't necessary. She flipped him the bird and dropped the towel as she passed through the doorway and he couldn't help but laugh. She peeked around the door before shutting it.

"And I still need to talk to you when I get out," she said then disappeared.

Eliot started on some breakfast while she was getting cleaned up; some eggs and toast with bacon and juice. He was just setting the small table as she came out of the bathroom in a clean towel. She made her way to the couch before Eliot stopped her and handed her one of his dress shirts to wear while they waited on their laundry to finish.

"Thanks," she said as she started on the buttons but Eliot beat her to it and gently pushed her hands away. They sat down to eat and continued in silence. She had come to him so he was going to let her talk when she was ready. After taking their dishes to the kitchen, he wrapped his arms around her waist and put his chin on her shoulder. She couldn't help but laugh at the big goofy smile on his face. "So…" she started.

"Yes?" he asked as he pulled away.

"About that conversation we need to have… There's something I really need to tell you."

"Ok, I'm listening," he said as he leaned against the counter.

"It's about why I left… I didn't mean to hurt you, I just couldn't deal with what was going on at the time," she started.

"Well, I can't exactly quit my job, you know that."

"Let me finish, please." She took his apologetic look as a yes. "It wasn't your job, it was… Do you remember that conversation we had before you left for Denver?" He nodded so she continued. "Well, I take it you remember how it ended, with us talking about kids?" He nodded again. "I need to show you something, it'll be easier than telling you." She walked to her purse in the living room and pulled out a small box. She returned to the kitchen and handed to him. He took it and glanced at her while opening it. When he took off the lid, there were pictures inside. And not just any pictures… On top was a sonogram and, if he was looking at it correctly, it was a girl.

"What is this, Michelle?" he whispered as he flipped through the photos of the little girl. She was in diapers, a little pink dress, a crib, a baby bathtub; there were so many.

"That, _she_, is your daughter," she managed to get out as she moved closer to him. The box fell from his hands and clattered to the floor.

"My what?" he bit out. His body went rigid, full of anger. He clenched his fists to keep from breaking something. "You mean to tell me you left here carrying my child and you didn't tell me?!" his voice rose as he talked. "And you just come back here… and you… and we… all night… how could…" he sputtered to a stop. He bent down and snatched up one of the discarded pictures. He ran his finger across the paper, down the child's cheek.

"El, let me explain," she begged.

"No, she's my daughter," his voice softened at the feel of the foreign word. He never wanted kids. There was just too much risk, but that familiar face looking up at him from the photo had him changing his mind. He met Michelle's eyes. "And you didn't tell me…" he repeated. "What's her name?" his eyes dropped again.

"Ella Spencer," Michelle provided. Eliot's head snapped up.

"You gave her my last name?" If she had his last name, it would just make it that much easier for his enemies to find him, to get to him. Even if he'd never met her, he didn't want anything bad to happen to the little girl. There were a lot of people that would do anything to get to him, kids were never off limits to them.

"No, she has my last name, Spencer is her middle name,"

"How old?" he was trying to do the math in his head, but his brain just wouldn't compute.

"9 months on the 27th," she said.

His mind was reeling. He leaned against the counter and slid to the floor, causing a few of the pictures to flutter away. He found one where the child was wearing a hat with her name on it. "And Ella?" he wondered where the name came from.

"After you," she replied with a weak smile.

"How could you not tell me, Sweetheart?" he asked as he stood and walked towards her.

"Well, when we were talking, you said you never wanted kids but there was no way I was going to get an abortion. This is what I was trying to tell you that night. I had just found out a week beforehand and I wanted you to know before you headed back out of town. But, I thought you needed to know and Ella is going to need a father when she gets older and she is definitely going to have questions."

"Where is she? Can, can I meet her?" he asked hesitantly.

"She's at my mom's, I dropped her off before heading over here last night."

"I thought you were staying at a hotel."

"Yeah, about that… I lied, I figured you'd think something was wrong if I was staying with my mom. You know how things were between us after my dad died. And I didn't want to just show up with a baby on my hip. I wasn't sure how you would take the news. What are you thinking, anyways?"

"Well, I'm still kind of processing… I never thought I would have a kid, I certainly never planned on it. But, I would like to meet her, if that's ok." The smile she had first fallen for appeared on his face and she couldn't say no.

Eliot dug through his drawers to find something suitable for Michelle to wear and, after they finished getting dressed, they were on their way to introduce Eliot Spencer to his female mini-me.

"Do you remember how to get there?" she asked.

"I think so, it's Columbus Drive, right?" he checked as he turned the key in the ignition. He was still slightly trembling from the news he had received only moments ago. It wasn't exactly what he expected when he got home last night, to get a visit from the past and find out that he's a father.

"Yes, Cannery Estates, apartment 319. She's switched floors since I moved."

"Where did you move to? I'd kind of like to know where my daughter has been living for the past nine months." It still felt odd to say that he had a daughter.

"St. Louis. I got a job at a hospital there with some great benefits for Ella. She's a great little girl, very smart, very advanced. I'm actually expecting her to start walking any day now." She looked out the window as she told Eliot a few more details of their daughter's life. There was so much he had missed out on.

"So… has there been anyone in Ella's life? A father figure?" He was fishing for information on both of his girls. That felt weird to think, that he had "girls" now. He wasn't that guy, the one that settled down and raised a family. Yeah, he liked kids but he wasn't the father type. He was the over-protective uncle.

"No, no one. It's just been me and Ella since I left that night. And, I'm sorry, Eliot. I honestly didn't mean to hurt you."

"We're here," he said as he parked the Challenger in front of the building. He got out no sooner than putting the car in gear and put money in the meter, avoiding her apology. Michelle followed and they made their way to the third floor in silence. As the elevator doors opened, they could hear a baby's cries coming from the other end of the hall. When they got to the door marked 319, Michelle turned the knob and the cries got louder.

"Mom? We're here," she exclaimed as she ushered Eliot inside. There was a look of sheer terror on the hitter's face as Michelle's mom came from the kitchen with the little girl on her shoulder.

"She woke up at 6 and I've been trying to get her calmed down but nothing's working! Can you take her, please?! I need coffee." With that, her mom placed Ella in Michelle's arms and walked away, presumably to get coffee. Eliot had no idea what to do, he had never been around a child this young before. After a few minutes of her mother trying to calm her down, Ella was still going strong. Michelle pulled her from her chest and held her straight in front of her.

"Ella, calm down. It's ok, mommy's here, it's ok." Eliot had his hands in his pockets, having no idea what to do. Finally, Michelle looked right at him, like someone about to attack.

"What?" he asked as he backed away.

"Eliot, I need you to do me a favor…" she said as she walked towards him. "I need to change, can you hold her?"

"I, uh, I have no idea what the hell to do, Michelle." He put his hands up defensively but she kept coming.

"First off, watch your language. Second, this is your daughter. You should be fine. Just, take her so I can change and get you your clothes." She thrust Ella into his open arms and took off. "Just make sure you keep her head up!" she yelled as she went down the hallway. Eliot looked at the screaming child in his hands and glanced around, searching for a close place to sit. He didn't trust himself standing with a small child.

"Um, would you like to sit down? There's a nice seat right here. Let's sit down," he said as if he were talking to a grown person. He brought her a fraction closer as he took the few steps to the chair by the window. After taking his seat, he set Ella out on his knees in front of him and tried to remember anything anyone had ever said about holding a baby. When he thought he had it as close to perfect as he could, he introduced himself. "Hi, Ella, I'm Eliot… your father." At this point, she had slowed her cries, as if she knew there was something special about this new person holding her. He shifted slightly, laying her against his chest and leaning back into the chair. He looked down as he felt a tug on his shirt. The sight of her tiny fist clutching his shirt did strange things to his insides. He tentatively ran his hand up and down her back as her cries lessened even more and she rubbed her cheek over his heart. He dipped his head and pressed a gentle kiss to the child's hair. He released a breath he didn't know he was holding when the cries ceased completely and she was content to rest against him. He let his head fall back onto the chair, and continued to stroke Ella's back, his eyes feeling heavy. He fought to keep them open, but the warm weight on his chest and the rise and fall of his child's breaths was just too comforting.

When Michelle came out five minutes later, her new family was asleep by the window. It took everything she had in her not to cry at the unexpected sight. She thought Eliot would have questions but she knew he needed his sleep. Questions could wait until later.

Something moving against Eliot's chest woke him from one of the deepest sleeps he'd had in a long time. When he looked to see what had woken him, Eliot was surprised to see a baby in his lap, his baby if he remembered correctly. This was his daughter, and there was no denying it. Other than her smile, she was a spitting image of Eliot Spencer. The brown hair, the Spencer nose, she even had his ears!

"Hey there, Ella," he whispered so as not to startle the stirring infant. "Um, this is your, uh, daddy speaking. If your eyes stay like that, you're gonna have my eyes, just don't tell your mom." Michelle also had blue eyes but right now, Ella's were darker like Eliot's. He couldn't help the smile that danced across his lips. This little girl was going to change everything for him. He'd missed Michelle's whole pregnancy, and everything leading up until now in his little girl's life, he wasn't going to let that happen again. This was crazy, he didn't even want kids! But… with this little angel in his arms, he was starting to rethink a few things. Yeah, it would still be dangerous because of his past and his current line of work but she had Michelle and it looked like she'd done an alright job so far. Ella would be safe with her.

A noise on the other side of the room snapped Eliot out of his trance and his head jerked towards the source. His eyes landed on the couch just by the door and he relaxed when he saw it was just Michelle stretching out of what appeared to have been a deep sleep.

"Morning," he whispered as she stood and made her way to the chair he had fallen asleep in.

"Actually," she checked her watch, "it's afternoon. Almost three o'clock but I didn't want to wake you guys." She smiled and Eliot returned the gesture. When Michelle reached to take Ella from him, he didn't know what to do. He had just gotten used to the little girl and now his arms felt empty without her there.

"I know we just woke up, but I need to go to the hospital, to check on the team." He stood as he said this. He actually felt awkward, a very rare occurrence for Eliot Spencer, and he had no idea what to do with himself.

"Oh, ok. Well, I thought you'd want to spend some time with Ella but I understand." Michelle turned to go into the other room and before he could realize what he was saying…

"Why don't you guys come with me?" he blurted out. Michelle stopped in her tracks and turned to face Eliot.

"Are you sure? I don't want to pressure you to do something you don't want to do…"

"Yeah, it's fine." He shrugged it off as he made his way to door. "You guys should come. It might actually make it a bit easier to explain if you're there with me." The pair locked eyes and a smile made its way across Michelle's face as she nodded.

"Alright, just let me grab Ella's bag." A few minutes later, they were downstairs and, after working out the car-seat situation, on their way to the hospital. They rode in silence: Eliot was still trying to process everything that had happened over the past few hours. He still couldn't believe that he had a little girl; he had _never_ wanted kids but now... there was no way he could deny that little girl the right to a father.

When they reached the hospital, Eliot parked and was the first to get out. He made sure he was the one to get Ella from the backseat and grabbed her diaper bag, slinging it onto his shoulder before heading towards the doors. Michelle couldn't help but smile at the sight: Eliot Spencer with a car-seat in one hand and a diaper bag on his shoulder. It was all she could do not to laugh.

"What?" he asked as he stopped in his tracks and turned to face her.

"Nothing, just enjoying the show. It's nice," she said as she passed him and made her way through the doors. Eliot smiled, it felt nice to be needed for something other than beating people up. Michelle stopped to ask what room they were looking for and they were on their way. As they walked towards Nate's room, Eliot couldn't stop thinking of how he was going to tell his team that he was a father. He slowed in his pace before stopping altogether. How _was_ he going to tell them? "What's wrong?" Michelle asked.

"I, I don't know how to tell them... about Ella," he said, leaning against the wall. Michelle stepped toward him and took Ella and her bag.

"Just let me take care of it," she said with a smile. With that, she turned and continued down the hallway before stopping in front of Nate's door. "Come on, El." He followed her into the room and saw Sophie sitting on the edge of Nate's bed, in the middle of a conversation. His leg was in cast and hanging in a ceiling sling, having needed traction after being broken in more than two places. He had stitches across his forehead, making for a nice scar later on.

"Hey, Eliot. Who's this?" Nate asked with his usual smirk.

"Uh, this is Michelle."

"And who is this little angel?" Sophie asked, standing to take Ella from her car-seat.

Before Eliot could answer, Michelle cut in. "That's my daughter, Ella." Nate and Sophie shared a look that make Eliot a bit wary as to what they were thinking.

"Ella... as in 'Eliot'?" Sophie asked as she moved the little girl onto her hip.

"Actually, yes," Eliot chipped in. "This is my daughter." He let out the breath he hadn't even known he'd been holding. At least the hard part was over with; Parker would probably be the easiest to give the news to, she'd just ask a lot of questions. These were the people whose opinions mattered most to him.

"Really now?" Nate asked with a raise of the eyebrows. Sophie made her way to the side of his bed and took a seat, placing Ella in her lap as she did so.

"She does look just like you, except for the smile," Sophie said, "She must get that from her mother." Michelle smiled at the compliment before ducking into the bathroom. No sooner had the door closed before Ella started crying. It was like the kid had a sensor or something! He thought she was going to explain everything and then left him out to dry. Sophie tried everything to calm her but nothing worked so she passed Ella to Nate. He tried a few things that had worked when Sam was a baby but without any results. His injuries didn't make it any easier. It seemed like Michelle was gone for an hour... maybe she was doing this on purpose, to give Eliot time to bond with Ella. At last, Sophie placed the little girl in her father's arms, not at all surprised when she immediately calmed in Eliot's arms.

"Well, would you look at that? This little girl knows her daddy," Nate said, hiding a smile. It wasn't every day anyone from the team saw him out of his usual hitter persona. Eliot threw Nate a glare, tossing in a growl for good measure. That small noise caused Ella to stir in her father's arms, making Eliot regret it immediately. He looked to Sophie for help, not having any idea what to do to calm the child. He'd used up all his baby knowledge in getting her to sleep the first time. The fact that Nate was doped up on pain killers from his leg surgery had to be the reason he was so calm, usually he'd be making more of a big deal out of something like this.

"Crap, I have no idea what I'm doin' here, guys," he mumbled to his teammates. He tried rocking the little girl, bouncing her, anything he could think of. "Help me out here, Sophie." He tossed a glance in her direction, motioning for her to take the baby from him but she refused, stepping away and smiling.

"Try singing to her, Eliot," Sophie suggested as she took her seat on Nate's bed once again. Since the Memphis job, Sophie had tried to find all kinds of opportunities to hear Eliot's voice; there was just something about his voice that she couldn't resist.

"I... don't know about that, Sophie," Eliot said. Ella began to sob before breaking into a toned down version of the fit she had that morning. One look into those deep blue eyes and Eliot was sunk. It seemed that singing would be the only way to get his little girl calmed down. "What would I sing? I don't exactly dabble in children's music..."

"Try something you know, with appropriate lyrics for a baby," Nate said.

"Um, I guess I could try... _I never did have anything, I never wanted much anyway. I never learned how to play the game; like the lucky few. I was in love but it fell apart, I never cared much from the start. And now I keep my distance from those happy hearts of the lucky few. And I, I know that I'll survive. And I, I'm glad to be alive. But I won't be like you: one of the lucky few. I hang around this crazy town, I watch these people throw their money 'round. The second coming wouldn't slow them down; oh, the lucky few. And I, I know that I'll survive. And I, I'm glad to be alive. But I won't be like you: one of the lucky few. Yeah, one of the lucky few."_ As he drifted off on the last note, Michelle appeared with a smile on her face. Eliot looked up to see he had a bit of an audience; a few nurses had gathered in the doorway and were looking at him – he just didn't know why. Maybe they were enamored with a big guy like Eliot Spencer singing to a baby in his arms who just so happened to be spitting image of him. "What're you lookin' at?" he barked at them, careful not to disturb the sleeping infant. The nurses jumped and dispersed, earning a smirk from Eliot. Not a moment later, a familiar blonde head popped in the doorway.

"What's with the crowd?" Parker asked as she bounced into room, her cast perched in a sling. The bruises on her face were surrounding multiple scratches and she would definitely not be hanging from any bungee cords anytime soon. It seemed like this job was going to put the whole team out of commission for a while. She glanced at Eliot, Michelle, and Ella as she perched herself on the empty bed. "And who's the kid?" Eliot handed the child to her mother and stepped away, ruffling the hair on the back of his head. Everyone looked at one another, sharing the universal thought of who would tell Parker the news.

"Parker, this is Michelle and her daughter Ella," Nate made the introductions, gauging her reaction.

"Cool. Why's Eliot holding a diaper bag? Is it his kid, too, or something?" she joked, snorting as she asked.

"Yeah, actually. Ella is my daughter," Eliot spoke up. Three down, one to go. When Hardison came out of his coma, he would definitely have the most emotional reaction.

"Alright. When are we getting out of here?" she chirped. Typical Parker, just rolling with the punches.

"Uh, I think I'm getting released tomorrow. But aren't you already discharged?" Nate asked.

"Yeah, just been hanging out with Hardison. I heard all the noise in the hallway and came to see what was going on, didn't really expect to see Eliot putting on a concert for the nurses." She was desperately trying to scratch beneath her cast. She could pick the most advanced of locks and safes but put the girl in a simple plaster casing, and she was as helpless as the rest of the population. "Speaking of which, they said he should wake up in a couple of days."

"That's great," Michelle chipped in. She hadn't said a word since introducing herself.

"Yep," Parker agreed.

"So, who's in for pizza?" Sophie asked.  
-

_THREE WEEKS LATER:_

Hardison rolled into headquarters, his laptop on his knee. He'd just been released from the hospital a few days earlier but with two broken legs, he wouldn't be walking any time soon. The past few weeks had been hard on the whole team and it didn't help that they seemed to be keeping something from him. Nate, Sophie, and Parker were all sitting around the table in Nate's small dining room; the only one missing was Eliot. His car was downstairs so Hardison knew he was there, he just wasn't anywhere to be seen. The small group hushed as the TechnoGeek wheeled his way up to the edge of the table, only proving that they were all up to something. Parker was trying to scratch beneath her cast as usual and Nate hobbled into the kitchen, asking Hardison if he'd like one of his many orange soda's he had supplied in the refrigerator. Who was he to say no? After a few minutes of awkward silence, there was movement on the stairs from the second floor of the apartment. Eliot made his way to the table... with a baby on one hip and a diaper bag on the other shoulder. It didn't help any that Eliot seemed to be enamored with the little girl.

"What in the hell...?" Hardison started, his eyes going wide.

"Shhh, I just got her to sleep," Eliot said, rocking the small child against his chest. He slid the diaper bag onto the counter and walked around the kitchen. The past three weeks had allowed him to learn a few tricks about his daughter. Hardison looked to the team for answers but saw only smiles on each of their faces. Well, aside from Parker who was still trying to scratch her arm and had a look of concentration on her face. He turned to the one person that would definitely give him a straight answer.

"Parker, who is that?" He pointed in Eliot's direction.

"That's Eliot, you should know that," she stated with a roll of the eyes. Nate took mercy on the girl and slid her a fork across the table. "Thanks, Nate!" She sighed as she finally reached the spot that had been avoiding her all day.

"Ah, you can keep that," Nate muttered as he took a seat next to Sophie.

"I know that. I meant, who's the kid? And why's he being all mushy? It's kinda creepy."

"Oh, that's Ella. Apparently, Eliot knocked up some chick over a year ago and now he has a kid." At least he could count on Parker to give him an honest answer, aside from the past three weeks of lies.

"Wait – Eliot has a kid? Why am I just learning about this now?!" He turned to face the rest of the team, the traitors.

"Damn it, Hardison! So help me, if you wake her up..." It was too late. Ella's cries filled the room and all eyes fell on the chair-bound loudmouth. Eliot sent Hardison a glare before he walked back upstairs to put his daughter to sleep. Hardison could swear he heard the hitter singing to the little girl.

"What? Did you honestly expect me to get that kind of news and not say anything? Exactly how long was I in a coma? How old is that baby? Why does Eliot have her? And is it even safe for him to hold a baby? Wouldn't he squish it? Where's the little girl's momma?" Hardison kept rambling and rambling as usual until Sophie stopped him.

"It's fine, Hardison. He know what's he's doing, he's had the last three weeks to get the hang of it. And I must say, he's doing a pretty good job adjusting. As for Ella's mother, she's out looking for a job; she decided to move back to Boston so Eliot can get to know his little girl." The whole team couldn't help but look at the man in the chair, waiting to see it all sink in.

"Well, I just wanna know why I was the last to know," he mumbled as he crossed his arms. "I'm always the last to know anything going on between you guys." He was talking more to himself now than anyone else in the room. Nate smirked at his peculiar family seated in his dining room, minus the one member upstairs. Despite a few injuries, it was nice to have them all together and back home again.

Sophie watched as Eliot came back downstairs with his daughter asleep in his arms, smiling the smile only she could get out of him. She smiled as she watched the exchange between the father and daughter, this little girl was going to change everything. She'd already changed her father so much. Yes, Ella had come into their lives at just the right time.

Ella may have been unexpected and he hadn't known he wanted her until he met her, but the little girl in Eliot Spencer's arms was the best thing that had happened to him in a long time. He took a look around the apartment, took in the sight at the table, and he realized that this was his new family, Ella's new family. She was going to grow up with an odd group of people with a special set of skills that would love her like she was one of their own. If he had anything to do about it, she would stay out of his line of work but if she was anything like her father, there would be no stopping her when she made up her mind. He looked down at the sleeping child in his arms and another smile slipped from his lips.

"You know what, Darlin'? I love you, your daddy loves you," he whispered.


End file.
